← 3.48.21 · Araṇya Kāṇḍa 48: Jaṭāyu confronts Rāvaṇa · 3.48.23 →

Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.48.22

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 48: Jaṭāyu confronts Rāvaṇa. The aged vulture condemns the abduction, demands Sītā’s release and challenges the armed ruler despite his own disadvantage

In the sequence: he challenges Rāvaṇa to fight rather than flee while the brothers are absent → he vows to serve Rāma and Daśaratha even at the cost of his life.

3.48.22

yudhyasva yadi śūro 'si muhūrtaṃ tiṣṭha rāvaṇa
śayiṣyase hato bhūmau yathāpūrvaṃ kharas tathā

'Fight, if you are a hero! Halt a moment, Rāvaṇa. You will lie slain upon the earth, just as Khara did before you.'

Words: yudhyasva — fight; yadi — if; śūro — a hero; 'si — you are; muhūrtaṃ — for a moment; tiṣṭha — stand, wait; rāvaṇa — O Rāvaṇa; śayiṣyase — you will lie; hato — slain; bhūmau — on the ground; yathāpūrvaṃ — as before; kharas — Khara; tathā — so

Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki, the ādikavi of the ādikāvya: the first poet of the first poem. Sanskrit: The Vālmīki-Rāmāyaṇa: Critical Edition, Oriental Institute, Baroda, 1960–1975 (gen. eds. G. H. Bhatt, U. P. Shah); IAST from GRETIL (Göttingen). Translation and word glosses: Claude Opus 4.6–4.7; summaries and sequences: ChatGPT Astra (machine-made). Numbering follows the Critical Edition, not the vulgate (e.g. Gita Press, valmikiramayan.net), so sarga and verse numbers can differ from those editions.